Senior Spotlight: Cal's Trio of Senior Receivers Look To Finally Beat Stanford in The Big Game
There are a couple of things the seniors on California's team have never done; one is go to a bowl game. They have assured themselves that will happen last week with a win over Oregon State. The second item on the bucket list before graduating is beating Stanford.
Cal's last victory over the Cardinal came in 2009, which came at the end of a stretch where Cal had won seven of eight, with all but the final win coming by decisive double-digit margins. The hiring of Jim Harbaugh at Stanford started to turn things around in Palo Alto and the Cardinal eventually became a top power in the Pac-12. Stanford has flexed its muscle over Cal since 2010 with its own run of wide margin victories, although Cal kept it to three points in 2011.
Last week, the senior members of the offense helped step things up and get Cal back on the winning track after a dreadful four-game losing streak put postseason eligibility out of reach longer than anyone may have expected following a 5-0 start to the season. Those same seniors will have to lead the way once again if Cal is to hand Stanford a second straight loss after the Cardinal were upset at home last week by Oregon, shredding the playoff dreams of Stanford fans to pieces. Stanford should be fired up to make up for last week, as a win would clinch the Pac-12 North for the Cardinal.
Against Oregon State, senior wide receivers Maurice Harris, Trevor Davis and Bryce Treggs were the leading receivers for Cal. Young phenom Kenny Lawler battled through an injury; but fortunately for Cal, the trio of seniors were more than capable of handling the football when junior Jared Goff took to the air. Those three will be tested against Stanford's Pac-12 leading passing defense. The Cardinal have allowed just 214.1 passing yards per game. Last week saw Harris lead the team with 97 yards and two touchdowns. Davis added 90 yards to help move the chains on some big plays and Treggs added 71 yards on three receptions. The three seniors may not catch a ton of passes, but big yards tend to be picked up when they do. Doing so against Stanford will be key.
When these two teams met last season, Stanford kept the then-juniors in check for much of the game. Treggs caught three passes for 51 yards. Davis had one catch for 17 yards and Harris picked up nine yards on two receptions. That was then. What will they do this year as they look to give Cal a hold of The Axe for the first time in six years?
Kevin McGuire is a Philadelphia area sports writer covering the Philadelphia Eagles and college football. McGuire is a member of the FWAA and National Football Foundation. Follow McGuire on Twitter @KevinOnCFB. His work can be found on Examiner.com.
